Unhappy with the current state of affairs in Karnataka and private sector investment drying up, the business community is backing 14 candidates from different political parties seeking "cleaner administration" and "improved governance".

They will not only financially support the candidates but also campaign for them.

As a first step in this direction, business czars, celebrities and key opinion leaders of the city have launched a new forum- Bangalore Political Action Committee (BPAC).

Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, who is the Managing Trustee & President of BPAC, said the list of candidates was finalized after due diligence of available records and BPAC's own internal assessment of the candidates.

"We believe that the issues these candidates have promised to pursue, if elected, are well aligned with the immediate and long-term needs of Bangalore City. We would therefore like to urge Bangalore citizens to consider these candidates as they prepare to vote on May five," she told reporters here on Saturday.

The focus of the BPAC will start from Bangalore, as the city contributes nearly 60 per cent to the state's GDP. However, the city's infrastructure is in shambles with peak hour traffic remaining at an agonizing 6 kilometer per hour.

The city's roads are in a very bad shape and hour-long traffic jams have become common. The mayor himself has been at the centre of various land scams.

"The urban-educated middle class has for far too long been outsiders when it comes to actively engaging in the political process. This has to change. It is now time for all of us to take active interest and be pro-actively engaged with our elected leaders and get them to share our vision for Bangalore," she pointed out.

The BPAC has begun the right way by tackling problems at the grassroots level. Each member of the BPAC has his/her own clout in the city.

They are taking advantage of this to reach out to the voters and urging them to cast their ballot without fail. The BPAC has been inspired by the Navabharath Foundation, a non-profit platform in Kochi that takes up developmental issues.

T V Mohandas Pai, Vice-President, BPAC, said, "We believe that our initiative of endorsing candidates is the next step in the evolution of our democracy." The BPAC members will also actively campaign for the candidates in their respective constituencies.